King Charles III’s coronation: A look at the history of Westminster Abbey, where he will be crowned as king

What is the association between this church and the royal family? We explain.

History of Westminster Abbey

An abbey refers to a religious building, which can either mean a church or a place where monks or nuns live. This abbey’s story begins with King Edward, also known as Edward the Confessor, who was born in the 11th century into a royal family but was forced to flee his homeland after Danish attacks in the region.

According to the church’s website, “The story goes that Edward vowed that if he should return safely to his kingdom, he would make a pilgrimage to St Peter’s, Rome.” Saint Peter is believed to be one of the 12 apostles or followers of Jesus Christ. However, Edward was unable to make the journey, being involved in the affairs of his kingdom. The Pope then “released” him from his vow on condition that he should found or restore a monastery to St Peter.

An article in the Smithsonian Magazine noted that the Abbey was originally founded around the year 960 as a monastery on what was then a marshy delta called Thorney Island, formed where two streams met the river Thames. Today there is no trace of the land being part of an island.

On Edward’s orders, a new church was then built at Westminster. The Abbey was consecrated in 1065, but this church was mostly demolished by Henry III around 200 years later to build the present Gothic structure in honour of Edward.

Why has it become an important location for the UK royals?

Dr George Gross, a Visiting Research Fellow in Theology at the King’s College London, noted in a recent article that King Edward was later made a saint in 1161 by the church after his death. “His canonisation was essential in creating the holiness of Westminster Abbey as a house of Kings or Queens. On 13 October 1163, Edward the Confessor’s body was moved to a special shrine within the Abbey.”

And starting with Edward, thirty kings and queens have come to be buried here. Five monarchs are buried in the royal tombs surrounding this shrine.

The Magazine adds that not just royals, but other notable public figures are buried here as well. Isaac Newton was buried there in the 18th century. Physicist Stephen Hawking’s ashes were also interred here in 2018. There is also a poet’s corner where Geoffrey Chaucer, who died in 1400, and Charles Dickens are buried.

Every Westminster Abbey coronation has taken place in the vicinity of his shrine and, therefore, in the saint’s presence, Gross adds. Successors were placed in St Edward’s Chair, famously known as the Coronation Chair, carrying the Stone of Scone, and monarchs are typically crowned with St Edward’s Crown. With the use of regalia related to King Edward, the influence of a monarch from nearly 1,000 years ago continues to hold strong over the present.